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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: arm · bowl · season · fall · coach · wound · straw · field

  1. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. field — farmland
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. season — in sport
  5. field — a subject
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. field — for sport
  11. fall — the season
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. fall — to drop
  14. season — of the year
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. fall — to drop
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. wound — an injury
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com